Introduction I have been asked to speak on the Base Erosion Profit Sharing of the OECD, or better know as BEPS. This is a new acronym that, similar to CRS and the harmful tax initiative program, is geared at a multilateral approach to the application of uniform tax rules and standards. Unlike the CRS and the harmful tax practices initiatives of the past, BEPS has a focus not necessarily on the private client, but on the multinational commercial organization ...
Getting the Deal Through – Shipbuilding is part of the series of Getting the Deal Through law guides published by Law Business Research that provide an overview of specialist areas of the law in a variety of international jurisdictions. It is published annually and the seventh edition, covers 13 jurisdictions. Leading practitioners from each jurisdiction answer the same key questions ...
The California Legislature is considering legislation that would, if enacted, prohibit public agencies that form a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) from contracting out of liability for the JPA's pension obligations. Backed by CalPERS, AB 1912 was introduced early this year partly in response to drastic CalPERS pension cuts for former employees of LA Works, a dissolved job-training JPA ...
Not long after President Trump announced that the U.S. would impose tariffs on steel and aluminum, the Department of Commerce launched an investigation that may lead to additional duties on imported vehicles and automotive parts. Effective, the Department will now examine whether imports of vehicles and auto parts threaten U.S. national security ...
Recent changes to Rule G-34 (the Rule) of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) will include an exception to the CUSIP requirements for certain direct purchase transactions with a bank or related entity (Direct Purchase Exception) ...
Earlier this year, the National Agency of Waterway Transports (ANTAQ) published Normative Resolution No. 20, which approves new rules for the authorization for the construction and exploration of private-use terminal (TUP), cargo transhipment station (ETC), small-size public port facility (IP4) and tourism port facility (IPTur), revoking Resolution No. 3,290. The new rules aim at adjusting the requirements and proceedings applicable by ANTAQ to the changes introduced by Decree No ...
Many California courts, politicians and regulators seem intent on attacking trucking and transportation companies. The California Supreme Court‘s, Dynamex Operations West Inc. v. Superior Court (Case No. S222732) decision is the latest example of this assault on the industry ...
“We simply cannot go on with this utterly outmoded way of working…Endlessly re-keying in the same information; repeatedly printing and photocopying the same documents; moving files about, losing all or parts of them in the process… It is a heavy handed, duplicative, inefficient and costly way of doing our work and it is all about to go. Considerably past time, we will finally catch up with the world.” Sir Brian Leveson ...
On May 7, 2018, Michigan’s version of the Uniform Commercial Real Estate Receivership Act (the “Act”) will go into effect—bringing long-overdue clarity to the laws surrounding receivers and receiver-managed properties. For decades, lenders, borrowers, owners, property managers, and other parties in business (or litigation) with receiver-managed properties in Michigan have had to rely upon a patchwork of case law and the limited guidance offered by MCR 2 ...
On 20 April 2018, the amendments to the Law on Foreign Exchange (the “Law”) were adopted and will enter into force on 28 April 2018. Exceptionally, the application of certain provisions related to the assuming of competencies over foreign exchange control by the National Bank of Serbia is delayed until 1 January 2019 ...
Autonomous vessels are generating increasing interest in the shipping industry, both due to novelty and promising commercial benefits. However, despite all the buzz actual investments in projects involving autonomous vessels remain few and far between. This article will take a closer look at the commercial and legal realities explaining why there is no imminent sea change in sight ...
“Belarus will become the first government in the world that opens wide opportunities for the use of blockchain technology”, said in a statement on the official website of the President of Belarus. Alexander Lukashenko, who signed the new law of the land, believes that his county “has every chance of becoming a regional center in this area.” The Presidential Decree of the Republic of Belarus No ...
UAE Federal Law 20 of 2016 (Regarding the Pledge of Movables as Security for a Debt) (the Pledge Law) introduced a new regime for registering a pledge over moveable assets which are pledged as security for the repayment of a debt. We reported on this law in our inBrief of January 2017, New UAE Pledge Law Over Moveable Assets, and our Legal Alert of 19 February 2018, The New UAE Pledge Law – Security Registration ...
In Texas, tenants who are obligated to reimburse property owners for property taxes have a right to protest the appraised value of the property if the property owner does not file a protest relating to the property. To facilitate this right, the Texas legislature enacted a law (Section 41.413 of the Tax Code) that requires the property owner to give all such tenants a copy of the notice of appraised value received by the property owner within 10 days of receiving the notice ...
The Report of the Financial Services Ombudsman (FSO) was issued earlier this year. As always, it contains interesting insights on trends and outcomes in FSO complaints. Complaints Received The FSO received 4,538 eligible complaints in 2017, broadly similar to the number in 2016. The FSO closed 3867 complaints during 2017 compared to 4,323 in 2016 ...
BackgroundThe Bank of Uganda recently released the Financial Institutions (Islamic Banking) Regulations (the “Regulations”), which were gazetted on 2 February 2018. The Regulations seek to operationalise Islamic banking in the country, which was introduced by The Financial Institutions (Amendment) Act, 2016 as part of its wider efforts to boost financial inclusion ...
On January 3, 2018, San Francisco’s State Senator Scott Wiener introduced a bill (SB 827) that would all but abolish the city’s famously strict land use controls—and those of virtually all California’s urban neighborhoods. It is considered the most radical of all the pro-housing legislation introduced during the last year in California ...
H.B. 4270 Passed - March 10, 2018 Signed by Governor - March 27, 2018 Effective - June 8, 2018 The Information Reporting and Payments to Owners bill (H.B. 4270) is a companion bill to the Cotenancy Modernization bill ...
The Finance (No 2) Act 2017(“FA”) received royal assent on 27 December 2017 and was introduced to amend theIncome Tax Act 1967, the Real Property Gains Tax Act 1976 (“RPGTA”), the Goods and Services Tax Act 2014and the Finance Act 2013. This article will discuss the amendments to the RPGTA as provided in sections 16, 17 and 18 of the FA. The amendments to the RPGTA came into operation on 1 January 2018 ...
The 2018 West Virginia legislative session was a busy one regarding consumer finance law. Legislators focused on the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act and the West Virginia Safe Mortgage Licensing Act. The West Virginia Legislature passed at least three bills this past session that affect consumers or financial transactions ...
Following an extensive consultation process over a two-year period with relevant stakeholders in the project finance market, the South African Registrar of Securities Services (the “Registrar”) has announced that the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (“JSE”) Debt Listings Requirements (“DLRs”) have been amended with effect from 1 March 2018 to include a new section 10, which will now specifically cater for so-called “project bonds” ...
Congress recently enacted comprehensive tax reform (the “Act”). This memorandum highlights some of the provisions of the Act that are particularly relevant to U.S. multinational groups, with a focus on the provisions relating to income associated with intangible property, as defined for applicable U.S. federal income tax purposes. New Corporate Tax Rate The Act significantly changes the U.S ...
As the Commission for the Financial Market (the “Commission”) came into full force this January (read previous news alert here), the regulation of the Chilean financial market took a step forward in terms of institutionalism and modernization. In this context, one of the changes introduced by Law No. 21,000 (the “Law”), that created the Commission, is the self-regulation of entities in the financial market ...
